1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to tape cassette recording and/or reproducing apparatus in which tape cassettes of different sizes can be selectively employed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a known tape cassette recording and/or reproducing apparatus capable of selectively employing tape cassettes of different sizes, for example, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,664,337, having a common assignee herewith, a cassette holder is movable between a cassette receiving and discharging position, where it can receive a selected one of relatively large-sized and small-sized cassettes, and a loading position to which the selected cassette is conveyed by the holder. The known tape cassette recording and/or reproducing apparatus has a pair of reel bases movable relative to each other for varying the center-to-center distance therebetween, and a reel base adjusting device including a dedicated motor, that is, a motor employed only for varying the center-to-center distance between the reel bases, and which is selectively driven for moving the reel bases to positions in which the reel bases are engageable with the reels of a relatively large-sized cassette conveyed by the holder to the loading position, or to positions in which the reel bases are engageable with the reels of a relatively small-sized cassette conveyed to the loading position. Further, in the known apparatus, the size of a tape cassette inserted in the cassette holder at the cassette receiving and discharging position is detected and operation of the motor of the reel base adjusting device is controlled in response to such detection for ensuring that the center-to-center distance between the reel bases will correspond to that between the reels of the inserted tape cassette for engagement of the reel bases with such reels when the tape cassette is conveyed to the loading position.
However, the reel base adjusting device including a dedicated motor for driving the same when changing the distance between the reel bases is undesirably complicated in construction, and hence is expensive to produce. In this respect, it will be appreciated that the motor for driving the reel base adjusting device is in addition to the motor that is conventionally provided for effecting movements of the cassette holder between its cassette receiving and discharging position and loading position.